I Figured Out Why Standard Hubs are good to Keep

1. 85

   paperfacetsposted 7 years ago

   If you have a standard Hub that gets Amazon sales once in a while, keep the Amazon modules and get those 10% sales. Those Hubs have lots of Google history and I still get sales on them. A hat Hub just got two fifty in sales. Now who would be excited about $2.50? Me!
   
   So the old formula that Google slapped still works. The new named sites get Adsense and that is it. It seems that the old formula got slapped because it was not good for Adsense.
   
   Whose Adsense ads are crap anyway. Just because I do a little dieting I get all those disgusting flab ads. Thanks for nothing, Google.
   
   I am keeping my Hub pages diversified between old Amazon module formula and new named sites and get a little from both worlds.

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2. 86

   Marisa Wrightposted 7 years ago

   HubPages makes more money from its own HP Ads program than from Adsense.  I assume you've got that switched on? 
   
   I've had several Hubs moved to the niche sites with their Amazon ads intact.  It's just a case of following the new rules. 
   
   I took a glance at one of your Hubs, which was about a straw hat.  Currently what you're saying is, "this is an article about a straw hat with a shallower brim, and here's a random one on Amazon".   That's no longer enough.  You have to say "this is an article about a straw hat with a shallower brim, and I recommend this one made by .. on Amazon because it...."
   
   Make that one simple change and you'll find your Amazon ads survive.

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   1. 85

      paperfacetsposted 7 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks for that bit of advice. How come the editors do not do that for us? It would help HubPages.

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      1. 86

         Marisa Wrightposted 7 years agoin reply to this

         If you think about it, it wouldn't be reasonable to ask the editors to do that.
         
         Take the hat example - they would have to go to Amazon, search for suitable hats, then read the description and all the reviews to decide which was the best one, then write something about it.  And what if they knew absolutely nothing about hats? How could they be sure what they wrote was correct?
         
         That's why it's got to be up to us to find the right product. The idea is, if you're going to write a  Hub about something, you must know a bit about it - so you should have enough knowledge to be able to recommend a product.

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         1. 85

            DzyMsLizzyposted 7 years agoin reply to this

            I believe that in addition to just saying  " the product is good because...  ..."  HP now expects you to have personal experience with using the item yourself.  If you do that, your Amazon capsules will stay.  I recently had to fix a couple of those, and delete several others.
            
            The ones I fixed, adding a description of my experience with the item, stayed with the hub when it was put on the niche sites.
            
            The ones they don't like, is in the case of searching Amazon, finding a book (for example) that sounds like it fits your topic, and sticking it into your hub.  If you haven't read the book, and can personally recommend it, then don't include same.

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3. 85

   paperfacetsposted 7 years ago

   Wow, The editor team just reedited a Hub I have had in a vertical site for over a year and was getting over 200 views a day. The one item I had as a Amazon module and very diffidently talked about using because that long handled clipper is the tool I use twice a year for trimming the sago palm is now deleted from the Hub. Now I have zero chances of getting any Amazon sales. I just wrote how I received a sale above.
   
   I am very dismayed and now can not figure out why Marisa says some Amazon modules are okay. Not for me I guess.  Here is now I talk about this handy product. "I use the long handle lopper. The long handle is essential for getting near the base of each spear. Also the bigger size of the clipper is needed to surround each spear for a clean cut. Last it is long enough to avoid thorns and other sharp objects."
   
   They trimmed over 200 words of my narrative, as well. But it is not for me to say they did anything wrong. Just saying.

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   1. 86

      Marisa Wrightposted 7 years agoin reply to this

      But did you say "I use THIS long handled lopper, because ...."?   
      
      It's not enough to say you use A long handled lopper.  You must choose a particular long handled lopper from Amazon and say why you like that particular model. 
      
      If you put the Amazon capsule back in, and put a description like that in the Description section, you'll have no problems.

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      1. 88

         lobobrandonposted 7 years agoin reply to this

         Yes, be specific. Don't just say you use one and have an ad. Say you use that particular model and also why you use it. It could even be one that you randomly decided to buy, that ended up being a real jewel. Write that.

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         1. 85

            paperfacetsposted 7 years agoin reply to this

            I am kind of shy and scared to add anything to the Hub now. All the observations of 30 years of experience is going somewhere else. My photos too.
            The Hub was okay last year, but this year it is not.
            
            Maybe it was bouncing too much or being a big exit point.
            
            I am trying to understand the re-edit of a Hub with these stats, 152    1,330    4,682    37,727,  and is on the first page of Google under "sago palm" .
                .

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      2. 85

         paperfacetsposted 7 years agoin reply to this

         I think my quote of "I use the long handle lopper. The long handle is essential for getting near the base of each spear. Also the bigger size of the clipper is needed to surround each spear for a clean cut. Last it is long enough to avoid thorns and other sharp objects." is pretty clear that I use the long handle clipper. It is true the model did not show the fiskars long handle clipper which is the exact clipper I own. How would the editor know that is not the exact clipper I won?
         
         So if I select a fiskars module like my own clipper and say "I use THIS long handled lopper, because ...." they will like it? Like I said why don't they tell us that? They said something about spammy elements and simply deleted it.
         I feel dejected and feeling like the rules are hard to play. Confusing, at least.

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         1. 86

            Marisa Wrightposted 7 years agoin reply to this

            I just went and found your Hub.  I can see why the capsule was snipped.  It's not relevant to the MAIN subject of the Hub.
            
            People who find your Hub on Google will be looking for help to decide whether or not to PLANT a sago palm.  So they don't need to know about how to trim one, because they haven't got one yet.  If they follow your advice, they won't buy one, so they definitely won't need a trimmer.
            
            The rule is:  the item must be relevant to the main subject of your Hub (that's often expressed as, "it must be relevant to your title").  That means, if you tack on an extra paragraph about a side issue (as you did here), you can't have an Amazon capsule that relates to it.
            
            The second rule is, in theory, that you must have personal experience of the product.  Personally I think that's tosh, because it prevents us recommending something which we've researched thoroughly.  However, it's easy to get around it - as you point out, if you use "I"and "my" in the recommendation, HubPages has no way of knowing if you've actually used the product or not.

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            1. 85

               paperfacetsposted 7 years agoin reply to this

               Marisa,
               Okay I see. I have a Hub which I was planning on using for everything I know about the sago palm.
               The title in that case should say, maybe, "Everything you need to know about the sage palm."
               
               The goal of a vertical Hub is stick to the title and do not digress. Another reason to not submit a Hub to the verticals.
               
               Let me summarize the Verticals and what I am starting to grasp.
               1. Do not put in Amazon modules.
               2. Do not offer extended information if it is not hinted to in the title.
               3. Keep it all short for pointed limited discussions. What is the saying? "too much information" is a nono. It is true mobile readers may get confused. After all the 2 X 4 inch screen is a very narrow point for viewing.
               
               So I am going to rethink my submissions, and offer only short and sweet Hubs for the verticals.
               
               Marisa, Thank you for helping me understand.

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               1. 86

                  Marisa Wrightposted 7 years agoin reply to this

                  Oops, no, I think I haven't explained myself well, if that's how you're understanding it.
                  
                  Far from criticising your Sago Palm Hub, HubPages loves it - only the best Hubs (the top 20-30%) are moved to the vertical sites. It's the Amazon ad that's the issue and you now know why.
                  
                  Wide-ranging articles on the vertical site are absolutely fine.  In fact, they're particularly welcome.  The vertical sites want long, in-depth articles, 1,000 to 1,500 words.
                  
                  You'll notice your Sago Palm Hub was moved with that section on trimming included, so they have NO objection to you straying away from the title a bit.  It's just the Amazon capsules that can't stray. 
                  
                  You made a comment on my Hub about having information cut - which Hub was that?

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                  1. 85

                     paperfacetsposted 7 years agoin reply to this

                     Three pictures and update text on how the sago palm was surviving in the 6 year California drought were cut from the Sago Palm Hub.
                     
                     Also a picture of a black widow I found while trimming the palm and text that went with it. I did include a link to a Hub about battling black widows. That may have been too much interlinking.

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                     1. 86

                        Marisa Wrightposted 7 years agoin reply to this

                        OK, I think you already know the answer why those might have been cut.
                        
                        The second one is the easy one - what does a black widow have to do with sago palms, except you happened to find it there?  I'd have thought that was very, very clearly unrelated to the topic of the Hub.
                        
                        I suspect you could have kept the section on the drought IF you'd headed the section "Drought Resistance" and opened that section with a sentence about, if you live in an area that's liable to drought, Sago Palms can survive quite well and here's my experience with them in a drought.
                        
                        The fundamental message is, whatever you choose as a title, that's what your Hub should be about.
                        
                        So, you could easily write a general Hub about Sago Palms, and then you could a whole variety of different snippets of information about them. And it's quite likely it would be accepted on a vertical site.  But as soon as you choose a more specific title, then you've got to stick to that topic.

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                        1. 85

                           paperfacetsposted 7 years agoin reply to this

                           Marisa, thank you for the advice you shared with me in this thread. All these suggestions will go a long way in editing and submitting my Hubs in the future.

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                        2. 85

                           DzyMsLizzyposted 7 years agoin reply to this

                           In the article about the black widow, you could mention having found it on the sago palm, and with the photo;  I imagine that would not trigger any editorial backlash...

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                           1. 86

                              Marisa Wrightposted 7 years agoin reply to this

                              Yes, but you couldn't link to the sago palm Hub...

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4. 89

   Will Apseposted 7 years ago

   My preferred style with product related pages is to write informative, impartial articles in the third person without any call to action but with ads people can use if they choose to.
   
   When I am forced to switch to the first person and give a personal recommendation it really grates (for me and the reader). Suddenly I am a huckster trying to persuade someone to buy something.
   
   It ruins a page.
   
   The main competitor to any product comparison page on HP is Amazon. You need to offer something that Amazon does not. Given that Amazon is awash with personal reviews, your solitary personal review/recommendation is worthless.
   
   To beat out Amazon you need solid background info, technical explanations and a well judged overview of other people's reactions/reviews.
   
   Of course, if you have no personal experience of the class of products you are dealing with, you will be hopelessly at sea, Use your personal experience to help shape the page, without making it your main focus and readers will love you.

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5. 85

   paperfacetsposted 7 years ago

   Here are the numbers from Google Analytics for  Dec 19, 2016-Jan 18, 2017
   4,824(65.70%)
   4,473(67.90%)
   00:05:42
   4,473(68.78%)
   93.45%
   92.56%
   
   Does it say almost 6 minutes? or six seconds? Bounce and exit are high?
   
   Analytics for  Aug 1, 2016-Aug 31, 2016, the views are up during the summer months.   
   5,265(70.95%)
   4,924(72.69%)
   00:06:22
   4,924(73.62%)
   94.09%
   93.52%
   
   So if I analyze these figures what is the signal to make changes in my presentation?

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6. 88

   lobobrandonposted 7 years ago

   One of my hubs is doing much better than yours right now. And it is also the one I edit the most. I keep adding relevant data and seeing if I can say stuff in a different way that makes people like it even more. Hubs that are doing well are the ones you should keep updating. Of course, edit wisely.
   
   Btw to answer your question, that's 5 minutes not seconds.

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   1. 85

      paperfacetsposted 7 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks, lobo.

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7. 85

   DzyMsLizzyposted 7 years ago

   BTW--I'm loving the new niche sites!  I've had several articles moved over, and on those, my traffic is way up, and my daily pennies on articles are totting up faster than before.  I may be close to reaching payout every other month, instead of once a quarter or semi-annually, as before.
   
   I even got an Amazon sale--very rare for me!

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8. 67

   cindyvineposted 7 years ago

   Seems like Hubpages has changed a lot since I was last on several years ago!

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